“Count on us always for peace, never ever for war”: Timochenko to Petro and Francia Márquez

This Thursday, April 7, the former commander of the demobilized FARC guerrilla, Rodrigo Londoño known as Timochenko, asked the opposition leader and presidential candidate of Colombia, Gustavo Petro and his vice-presidential formula, Francia Márquez, to implement the Final Peace Agreement, which would include the elements for the” transformation” of the country.

The president of the Commons Party, a community made up of former members of the guerrilla, sent a letter to the candidates for the presidency of the Historical Pact in which he broke down one by one the points of the agreement and the difficulties faced by its implementation, while requesting a meeting to examine and analyze its depth and scope “devoid of prevention and with a view to a country completely alien to political violence and intolerance”.

“The position of the old elevations was clear from the moment they were signed, in the sense that their full implementation would not be automatic. The Agreement contains a transformative potential capable of itself triggering profound changes in Colombian life, so it could be thought that it would find opponents and pretexts. We signed with the conviction that the peace-friendly forces would be responsible for keeping him alive and we still believe it,” said Timochenko.

He also indicated that both Petro and Márquez had been chosen through the vote on March 13 as the candidates who will compete for the presidency in the country “representing a wide range of political and social forces that carry out a program of democratic, pluralistic and inclusive government”, placing at the heart of their government some of the main concerns contained in the Final Peace Agreement.

In this regard, he pointed out that the Commons Party is convinced that speeding up implementation will ensure the results contemplated by the six points agreed in the process of dialogue between the Colombian State and the demobilized guerrilla, indicating that for this reason he was addressing the formula that leads the intent polls in “moments when Colombian democracy is going through a litmus test”.

“Peace is such an important issue for the country and its future, that it requires analysis and exchanges with those who aspire to occupy the first judiciary. The Havana Accords undoubtedly deserve consideration of their depth and scope, devoid of any precautions and with a view to a country completely alien to political violence and intolerance. We are convinced that complete and comprehensive peace, including all the factors that still persist in violence, is not only a necessity, but something that can be achieved,” Timochenko said.

This statement comes a week after it was confirmed that the Commons Party would support the candidacy of the Historical Pact, after several months of speculation and a low vote evidenced at the polls, pointing out that one of the reasons why he believed that the candidacy of the Historical Pact is the real change, is its commitment to the implementation of the Peace Agreement.

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